


Snowbound

by mywordsflyup



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-12
Updated: 2015-04-12
Packaged: 2018-03-22 13:45:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3731122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mywordsflyup/pseuds/mywordsflyup
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cullen and Lavellan get snowed in on their way back to Skyhold. </p><p>Basically just fluff, fun in front of the fireplace and two idiots being cute.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Snowbound

The fact that they found the cabin at all was a miracle. The world had been reduced to swirling white and howling winds. And cold. A gripping, creeping, cutting cold that clawed its way deep into their bones. As they fought their way uphill, snow already reaching up to their knees, Elaria was reminded of the last time she marched through an icy wasteland like this. Of her broken body, the endless ocean of white in front of her, the snarls and howls of wolves coming for her from the darkness. But it was different now. She could feel Cullen behind her. Heard his labored breathing. As if he had read her mind, she felt his hand on her back. Comforting, reassuring. He was here this time.

And just when twilight had begun to settle in and the muscles in her legs started to ache and tremble, ready to give up, she spotted it. A hint of black amid the snow. Just for a second as a cutting gust of wind parted the thick white veil in front of them.

“I think I see something!” she yelled over her shoulder. “Up there!” She wasn't sure if Cullen could hear her over the roaring wind but when she pointed in the direction, he nodded. They made their way up another steep slope, hoods drawn deep into their faces. As they were coming closer, Elaria looked up and saw it again. A small cabin, built at the foot of a precipice.

They were lucky they had been approaching the cabin from the side that was shielded from the wind, otherwise they would not have seen it at all. Most of the roof and the wooden walls was already covered in a thick layer of snow as the wind pressed against it. The front door was clear and as quickly as the deep snow allowed it, Cullen and Elaria hurried towards it. There was an iron lock at the door and Elaria began searching for a lock pick in her pocket with stiff frozen fingers. But Cullen gently pushed her out of the way and struck the lock with pommel of his sword, hard. The rusty lock came apart with a crunching sound and they tumbled into the dark of the cabin. Cullen whirled around immediately, pushing the door closed against the strong wind.

For a moment they just stayed this way. Him with his back against the door. Her standing in the middle of the room, hands resting on her thighs. Both panting. But then the cold caught up with them again. Elaria turned around, quickly scanning the room. She could not see much – most of the windows where either covered with snow or with wooden shutters. But she spotted a fireplace in the corner. She pulled off her gloves as she knelt in front of it, feeling the stone with shivering hands. It was cold but dry. She was delighted to find some firewood and kindling neatly piled up next to it. Whoever owned this cabin had been prepared for the need to build a fire quickly.

“Help me with this!” she called out to Cullen who was by her side immediately. “Stack the wood.” She shrugged off her pack and rummaged around in it for the pouch in which she kept her flint while Cullen began putting wood into the fireplace. She found the flint stone and steadied her shaking hands. After a few harsh strokes, the sparks ignited the kindling which she carefully placed among the dry twigs and logs. After an excruciatingly long minute, flames began licking across the firewood, bathing the room in flickering warm light. Elaria let out a deep breath and Cullen slumped to the floor next to her, looking as exhausted as she felt.

But they were not done yet. Elaria forced herself to get up, every muscle in her body protesting. She looked around the cabin again. It was equipped with just the mere necessities. A table with two chairs, a bed in the corner and a large cupboard next to it. But it was relatively clean and well-made. Someone had obviously put some effort into it. She went to the bed and pulled the covers from it. Cullen watched her from his place in front of the fire, a quizzical look on his face.

“Take off your clothes,” she told him, tossing the covers next to him on the floor. He raised an eyebrow.

“Excuse me? I don't think this is the right time for that, love,” he said with chattering teeth that completely ruined his attempt at a smirk. She rolled her eyes and pulled more blankets from the cupboard. They were dusty and smelled of mildew but they would do.

“That's not what I meant. We need to get out of these cold clothes.” She began stripping. Almost every layer was frozen stiff. He hesitated for a moment, watching her as she exposed more and more skin. When she was down to her small clothes and his gaze lingered on her naked breasts, she cleared her throat and he snapped out of it. She smiled when she saw the flush on his cheeks as he started taking off his own clothes. There was something sweet about the way she could still make him blush like a schoolboy.

When he was just as naked as she was, she pulled him down onto the blanket she had spread out in front of the fireplaces and crawled into his lap. His skin was just as clammy as hers and he pulled the covers over their shivering bodies like a cocoon. He cradled her in his arms as she pressed her body against his, trying to cover every inch of her skin. Slowly but surely, warmth crawled back into their bodies. He had buried his face in her hair as his hands gently rubbed slow circles over her bare back.

After a while, her body stopped shaking and she lifted her head to look at him. He was smiling. His eyes unfocused, lost in thought, and she gently kissed him back into reality. But when she lifted her hand to cradle his face, he pulled back with a gasp.

“What is it?” she asked, taken aback.

“Your fingers are still ice-cold,” he complained. “Come here.” He took both her hands in his, lifted them to his lips and warmed them with his breath. All the while he did not break eye contact and Elaria could feel herself blushing underneath his gaze.

“Better?” he asked, his voice just a hoarse whisper. She nodded breathlessly. The small twitch at the corner of his mouth told her that he knew exactly what he was doing. She was not the only one who could still rouse a reaction.

She smiled as she pulled him down with her, his weight upon her heavy and comforting.

 

* * *

 

Afterwards there was no part of them that was cold anymore. Heat from the fireplace rolled over them, mixing with the languish swirls of their afterglow. She had her face tucked in the soft curve of his shoulder, one leg still draped over him. His fingers drew a lazy pattern on her hip as he was humming contently.

“The others are probably wondering where we are,” Elaria said, running her fingers through he soft golden hair on his chest. “We should send a raven.”

“We have no raven,” Cullen reminded her with a low chuckle.

“Oh, of course.” She smiled sheepishly, only now fully realizing how cut off from the world they really were. If they had not lost their way completely in the storm, they were less than a day's ride from Skyhold. But when a Frostback snow storm hit you, it didn't matter if you were just a few hundred yards from home. The snow and the winds were unforgiving. “It probably wouldn't survive in that storm anyway.” They listened to the wind's violent roars outside.

“We could just stay like this forever,” Cullen mumbled and with one free hand halfheartedly pulled a blanket over their naked bodies. “Starting a new life in this cabin.” They both had to laugh at that. The thought of them both shunning their responsibilities was too ridiculous, even in jest.

“Ah, yes. I can definitely see that happening. You not overseeing the training of the recruits personally. Knowing they are running around Thedas without knowing how to use their shield properly.”

“And you not feeling the need to save every single person in Thedas yourself. Just playing house. Cooking dinner for your husband. Staying home while I go hunting for a change.”

She had to muffle her laughter in the crook of his neck. “We would starve!”

“That's very likely,” he admitted. Both of them remembered very well how bad of a hunter he was. They lay in silence for a while after that, listening to the wind and the crackling fire and each other's heartbeats. Elaria had almost drifted off to sleep, when the sound of Cullen's rumbling stomach cut through the quiet. She got up on one elbow and looked at him as he covered his face with one hand, laughing.

“I'm so sorry my hunger is destroying the mood,” he said.

“Isn't it always?” she teased and untangled herself from him. He made a disapproving sound at her sudden absence. “Don't start. I'm doing this for your own good.”

He watched her as she walked over to their packs and started digging for some clothes that were at least half-dry. She tossed him a shirt and breeches before slipping on one of his shirts herself.

“I saw a kettle in the cupboard earlier,” she said and pulled the old battered thing out in the open. “So we even get tea.” She walked over to the front door and gave him an apologetic look. “Brace yourself.” Cold wind rushed into the cabin as she opened the door and quickly shoveled a few handfuls of snow into the kettle. Cullen scrambled to pull more blankets over his half-clothed body, a sight that only made her laugh as she slammed the door shut.

“That was cruel,” he said with an exaggerated pout. As she walked by she ran her fingers through his disheveled hair, just for a moment, before hanging the kettle over the fire so the snow inside it could melt. He reached for her and gently stroked the soft skin of her legs, delighted by the goosebumps that followed his fingertips. She looked down and raised an eyebrow.

“You know I'm not doing all the work by myself,” she chided with a light smile. “I'm not playing the housewife yet. Go and get the food.”

Chuckling he got to his feet and rummaged through his own pack for the last of their rations. Just hard bread crusts and cheese since they had originally planned to be back in Skyhold by now. But it would have to do. Elaria was standing by the table, preparing the herbs for the tea from the leather pouch with healing herbs she always carried with her.

“I know we are joking about it,” he said suddenly and she looked up. “But I think I want that someday. A quiet life with you.”

She did not know what to say at first, startled by his honesty. “What? No Inquisition? Just us and a cabin in the mountains?”

He came over to her and put down the food on the table. “Well, it doesn't necessarily have to be a cabin in the mountains. But yes, a place of our own.”

“Children?” she asked, keeping her eyes on her hands and the herbs and the scratched tabletop. It felt like walking on thin ice, all of the sudden. But she felt his arms snaking around her waist from behind, his breath warm on sensitive tip of her ear.

“Certainly,” he whispered, his hands flat on her stomach. She smiled, happiness swirling inside her like a small glowing sun. She could almost see them then. With curly hair like his and brown skin like hers. In that vague misty vision of the future it seemed somehow possible. A family of their own. She turned around and cupped his face with her hands, pulling him down into a passionate kiss. When they parted, he pressed his forehead against hers, a familiar touch that made her smile.

“But I'll be in charge of the hunting, right?” she asked with a smirk.

He rolled his eyes. “Of course. Those children need to be fed. And I'll be too busy with the dogs anyway.”

“What? Since when do we have dogs in that little scenario of yours?”

“Have I never told you of my life-long dream to breed Mabari?” A grin slowly stretched across his face. She pushed him away, both hands on his shoulders, holding him at arm's length.

“I'm not really a dog person, Cullen,” she said.

The grin vanished and he furrowed his brow. “Wait, what? Are you serious?”

“Sorry. They're just... very big. And loud. And hairy.” She scrunched up her face and gave him an apologetic shrug but the smile gave her away.

“I cannot believe I didn't know this about you!” Cullen exclaimed with faked outrage. “Milady, I am afraid if this is truly the case, I need to renounce my vows. I cannot be your husband any longer!” He turned from her in a pose which was so overly theatrical that she could not help but giggle. When he looked at her and cocked an eyebrow, she straightened her face and brought her hand to her chest in an equally dramatic fashion.

“Oh dear, say it isn't so! I will learn to love the slobbering beasts if that is what it takes! I will even allow them to sleep in our bed at night, as is the Fereldan tradition! Cover me with Mabari! Drown me in smelly fur!” She stopped, saw his shocked face and burst out laughing. He joined in with the dry chuckle she adored so much and closed the distance between them with a few steps. He pulled her into his arms as easily as breathing and she pressed her face into the folds of his shirt until the giggling stopped. When she looked up at him, he smiled warmly.

“Would you really leave me if I didn't like dogs?” she asked with a small smirk.

“Never.” He lifted her left hand to his lips and kissed it lightly, just at the spot where she wore the slender silver band he had put on her finger on their wedding day. Cast from the smelted silver of the coin he had given her during the war. A good-luck charm that now forever connected them.

With his other hand pressed against the small of her back, he pulled her closer and she closed her eyes as they slowly swayed back and forth – a dance of a kind. The only music the quiet crackling of the fire and the low howls of the mountain winds outside.

 


End file.
